Tengku Tengah Zaharah Mosque….Spiritual Decoration in Ibai River Estuary

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Failing to get off at Batu Burok Beach due to entrusted my trip too much to the Bas KITē driver, I was dropped off at my second target destination. It was Tengku Tengah Zaharah Mosque, the first floating mosque in my neighboring country.

Bas KITē stopped on the north side of the parking area which was also known as the Floating Mosque Ramadhan Bazaar area. Once down, I didn’t directly enter the mosque. I took a standing position on the north side of Ibai River’s estuary to enjoy the full view of Tengku Tengah Zaharah Mosque with its thirty-meter minaret from a distance.

Zaharah….is a word taken from the name of Sultan Mahmud’s mother, Tengku Intan Zaharah. The thirty-year-old mosque is truly enchanting to my naked eye from my standing position, it is appropriate that long wooden seats are provided on the north side of the estuary, allowing any visitor to sit at dawn or dusk to enjoy the beauty of the mosque which can accommodate a thousand worshipers.

Not only the building but I was also stunned by the water below. The estuary water is filled with tame fish which beautifully flock when fed by visitors from the connecting bridge on the north side. Visitors got fish food from a fish pellet seller in the parking area at a price of only one ringgit per pack.

I started to enter the mosque from the north bridge which was intentionally provided with a canopy along it, making it comfortable for visitors to linger to feed the fish. Along the canopy, signs bearing the words of the Prophet managed to become a shade of heart before actually entering the mosque.

The first thing I did when I arrived at the mosque’s door was to walk around the mosque and saw its view from all sides. Some amazing views of the surroundings were easy to find when I stood at the best spots on the mosque’s terrace. Do you want to see that beautiful view?…. Here it is:

Visitors who enjoyed fishing activities.
Cactus plant on the mosque’s veranda.
The connecting bridge on the south side is without a canopy.
Clear green….This is the form of the Ibai River estuary where the mosque stands.
An elegant pavilion that provides seating for visitors to enjoy the beauty of the surroundings.

After finishing recording memories in my head about all the beauty around the mosque, I rushed to the purification room. The time for Dzuhur hadn’t yet come, but I was very excited to perform the “tahiyatul masjid” prayer.

Entering the purification room, I washed my face solemnly, preparing myself to worship at the mosque whose position was very famous as an important landmark of the State of Terengganu.

Now I would enjoy the mosque inside which was the core part of the building, of course also the core part of this visit. The stretch of soft red carpet on the front row combined with a light blue carpet on the back makes the room come alive. Twelve large pillars support the entire mosque body and the side poles of the pulpit are decorated with beautiful lights looking up. While in the middle of the building perched a dome with a hexagon structure base. Then the dominant green windows enrich its color. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to look upstairs.

I finished praying while some mosque staffs were still busy cleaning its terrace. I returned out of the mosque through the bridge on the north side and walked around the river estuary to the garden on the south side. I had to complete the point of view. After enjoying the north side, now I sat in the south garden and enjoyed the beauty of the Tengku Tengah Zaharah mosque from the other side of the estuary.

The visitation was completed by enjoying the beach on the east of the Lagun Kuala Ibai Public Park. That was a substitute beach for the Batu Burok Beach destination which I couldn’t reach because I was dissolved in the speed of the Bas KITe.

At one o’clock in the afternoon, I finished relaxing on the beach. I had to immediately take a seat in the area of ​​the Floating Mosque Ramadhan Bazaar which was widely stretched on the north side of the mosque to wait for the arrival of Bas KITē which would arrive in an hour. I didn’t want to be left behind because I had to immediately go back to the Hentian Bas Majlis Bandaraya Kuala Terengganu. I still wanted to look for opportunities to go to Crystal Mosque which I decided this morning to cross off my bucket list.

Let’s pray!
The door and window designs are cool.
The windows of the mosque on each side…
Southside garden.
The view from the south side of the estuary.

This time I deliberately didn’t attend the congregational Dzuhur Prayer which would soon be held, I decided to just do it later. I had to catch the bus that time because the Bas KITē might come sooner.

I decided to sit on a side of the grassy area under the Rhu trees to avoid sunlight directly. Rhu trees certainly made my body more comfortable in waiting for the arrival of the C01 A KITe Bus.

I was now preparing to leave the Kuala Ibai District.

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Masjid Tengku Tengah Zaharah….Hiasan Ruhani di Muara Sungai Ibai

<—-Kisah Sebelumnya

Gagal turun di Pantai Batu Burok akibat terlalu menyerahkan perjalanan kepada pengemudi Bas KITē, aku diturunkan di destinasi incaran kedua. Adalah Masjid Tengku Tengah Zaharah, masjid terapung pertama di Negeri Jiran.

Bas KITē berhenti di area parkir sisi utara yang juga terkenal sebagai area Bazar Ramadhan Masjid Terapung. Begitu turun, aku tak langsung memasuki masjid. Aku mengambil posisi berdiri di sisi utara muara Sungai Ibai demi menikmati tampilan utuh Masjid Tengku Tengah Zaharah bermenara tiga puluh meter itu dari kejauhan.

Zaharah….Adalah kata yang diambil dari nama ibunda Sultan Mahmud yaitu Tengku Intan Zaharah. Masjid berusia tiga puluh tahun itu sungguh mempesona dipandang dengan mata telanjang dari posisi berdiriku, pantas saja bangku-bangku dari lembaran panjang kayu disediakan di sisi utara muara, memberikan kesempatan kepada pengunjung manapun untuk duduk di fajar ataupun senja demi menikmati keindahan masjid berkapasitas seribu jama’ah itu.

Tak hanya bangunannya, aku juga tertegun pada air di bawahnya. Air muara itu dipenuhi ikan-ikan jinak yang bergerombol indah ketika diberi makan oleh para pengunjung dari jembatan penghubung di sisi utara. Pengunjung mendapatkan makanan ikan dari seorang penjual pelet ikan di area parkir dengan harga satu Ringgit saja per bungkusnya.

Aku mulai memasuki masjid dari jembatan utara yang sengaja diberikan kanopi di sepanjangnya, membuat para pengunjung nyaman berlama-lama untuk memberi makan ikan. Di sepanjang kanopi, papan-papan bertuliskan sabda Rasulullah berhasil menjadi peneduh hati sebelum benar-benar memasuki masjid.

Hal pertama yang kulakukan ketika tiba di depan pintu masjid adalah mengelilingi masjid dan melihat pemandangan dari seluruh sisi. Beberapa pemandangan luar biasa ke arah sekitar mudah sekali kutemukan ketika aku berdiri pada spot-spot terbaik di teras masjid. Mau lihat pemandangan indah itu?….Ini dia:

Pengunjung yang menikmati kegiatan mengumpan ikan.
Tanaman kaktus di beranda masjid.
Jembatan penghubung di sisi selatan yang tanpa kanopi.
Jernih kehijauan….Inilah wujud muara Sungai Ibai dimana masjid berdiri.
Paviliun elegan yang menyediakan tempat duduk bagi pengunjung untuk menikmati keindahan sekitar.

Usai tuntas merekam dalam kepala segenap keindahan di sekitar masjid, aku bergegas menuju ke ruang bersuci. Waktu Dzuhur belumlah tiba, tetapi aku sangat bersemangat untuk melakukan shalat tahiyatul masjid.

Memasuki ruang bersuci, aku benar-benar membasuh muka dengan khusyu’, mempersiapkan diri untuk beribadah di masjid yang kedudukannya sungguh tenar sebagai landmark penting Negara Bagian Terengganu.

Kini aku akan menikmati sisi dalam masjid yang merupakan bagian inti dari bangunan itu, tentu juga menjadi bagian inti dari kunjungan kali ini. Bentangan karpet lembut warna merah di shaf depan dipadu dengan karpet biru muda di shaf belakang membuat ruangan  menjadi hidup. Dua belas pilar besar menyanggga keseluruhan badan masjid dan tiang-tiang sisi mimbar berhiaskan lampu-lampu indah bertengadah ke atas. Sedangkan di tengah bangunan bertengger kubah dengan dasar struktur segi enam. Lalu jendela-jendela yang dominan hijau semakin memperkaya warna saja. Sayang, aku tak sempat melongok lantai bagian atas.

Aku selesai menjalankan shalat di saat beberapa pengurus masjid masih sibuk membersihkan teras. Aku kembali keluar dari tempat ibadah itu melalui jembatan sisi utara dan berjalan mengelilingi muara sungai menuju taman sisi selatan. Aku harus menggenapkan sisi pandang. Setelah menikmati sisi utara, kini aku terduduk di taman selatan dan menikmati keindahan masjid Tengku Tengah Zaharah dari sisi muara yang lain.

Kunjungan itu disempurnakan dengan menikmati pantai di timur Taman Awam Lagun Kuala Ibai. Itulah pantai pengganti destinasi Pantai Batu Burok yang tak bisa kugapai karena aku terlarut dalam laju Bas KITē.

Pukul satu siang aku mengusaikan diri bersantai di tepian pantai. Aku harus segera mengambil tempat duduk di area Bazar Ramadhan Masjid Terapung  yang membentang luas di sisi utara masjid untuk menunggu kedatangan Bas KITē yang akan tiba satu jam lagi. Aku tak mau tertinggal karena harus segera kembali ke Hentian Bas Majlis Bandaraya Kuala Terengganu. Aku tetap ingin mencari peluang untuk pergi ke Masjid Kristal yang tadi pagi telah kuputuskan untuk tercoret dari bucket list.

Shalat yuk!
Desain pintu dan jendelanya keren.
Jendela masjid di setiap sisinya..
Taman sisi selatan.
Pemandangan dari sisi selatan muara.

Kali ini aku sengaja tak mengikuti Shalat Dzuhur berjama’ah yang sebentar lagi akan diselenggarakan, aku memutuskan untuk menjama’nya saja nanti. Aku harus menangkap busnya kali ini karena bisa saja Bas KITē akan datang lebih cepat.

Kuputuskan untuk duduk di salah satu hamparan rumput di bawah pokok Rhu untuk menghindari terpaan langsung matahari. Pokok Rhu itu tentu membuat badan lebih nyaman dalam menunggu kedatangan Bas KITe Laluan C01 A.

Kini aku bersiap meninggalkan Distrik Kuala Ibai.

Kisah Selanjutnya—->